US home prices drop for a third week as buyers step back

Redfin data indicates home-sale prices slipped while pending sales hit a fresh record low.

U.S. home-sale prices fell from a year earlier for a third week in a row, the first extended downturn after three years of increases, according to data from Redfin, the real estate brokerage powered by Rocket.

The median home-sale price was $388,604 over the four weeks ending November 1, down 0.4% from the same period a year earlier.

The seasonally adjusted median monthly mortgage payment eased to $2,777 at a 7.24% rate, down from a five-week high of $2,811 in early October.

Market forecasters have said gradual improvements in affordability are likely to shape 2026. The latest figures add another concern: pending home sales slipped 0.6% week over week to the lowest level in Redfin’s records, which go back to 2021, and fell across every metro the company analyzed for a fourth straight week.

Sellers pull back as demand softens

New listings declined 1.5% week over week to their lowest point since January as sellers retreated from a weakening market.

Total active inventory was about 1.5 million homes, up 2.1% from a year earlier, while months of supply, which measures how long it would take to sell all current listings at the current sales pace, increased to 4.6 from 4.0.

Only 26.9% of homes went off market within two weeks, compared with 28% previously, and the share of listings with price cuts inched up to 21.2% from 20.6%.

Regional trends varied widely. San Francisco posted the biggest year-over-year price increase nationally at 17.3%, while Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and Austin, Texas, saw the steepest declines at 5.9% and 5.8%, respectively.

Pending sales fell the most in Seattle, San Diego, Atlanta, Denver and Las Vegas.

Buyers gain some leverage as prices cool

For mortgage brokers, the data suggests a small opening: sellers are showing more flexibility and buyer competition has eased.

Still, with the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaging 7.18% for the week ending November 5, the third consecutive weekly decline, the number of qualified buyers remains limited.

Matt Gouge, a mortgage broker and founding partner at UMortgage in California, summed up the mood among borrowers in an earlier interview with Mortgage Professional America.

“Buyers are coming to terms with the current state of affordability and housing. They’re just not fighting it anymore,” Gouge said.

As sellers continue to outnumber buyers across most U.S. metros, Michael A. Harris, president and chief executive of United Mortgage Corporation of America, cautioned brokers not to let rate-lock psychology disrupt clients’ long-term planning.

“A low interest rate is valuable, but it should not become a financial or personal trap,” Harris told MPA.

“The best mortgage decision is not always the one with the lowest interest rate. It is the one that best supports the borrower’s overall financial goals.”